Wishful Thinking
by Fighting-this-War
Summary: ElmerLona romance and angst. Kingdom Hospital Stand alone!
1. Default Chapter

**Elmer looked at Lona, she didn't look right. She didn't flinch when he came near her, the way she usually did, instead she allowed him to speak to her and ask her if she was ok, but the moment didn't last long and as he attempted to put his arm around her, she snapped at him, and they were back to square one. But to him, she still didn't look right; she looked upset, or worse angry. He could only hope she wasn't angry with him as that would kill him. He only wanted to get near her, to love her and feel her love back but he knew it would never happen so he sighed and went on his rounds. He saw her, saw her talking to a newly transferred doctor, Doctor M. Tolburn. He listened to her laughing and watched her flirtatious manner, making him sick to the stomach. So much that he knew he was gonna throw up so he began to ran to the bathroom, passing his father and Dr Hook, but as he turned to go into the bathroom, Dr Stegman got in his way so he ended up vomiting on him instead.**

"**Wh-Wh!" Stegman couldn't quite choke out the words but Elmer could see his face going red and knew he had to get out of there.**

"**Sorry, sorry!" he apologized and headed back down the hall.**

**"Who was that twerp??" Dr Tolburn asked and she sighed.**

"**That is Elmer; he is one of the med students here." She sighed again.**

"**What an idiot!" Mike Tolburn laughed but Lona did not join in. how could she? Elmer had followed her around from day 1, always trying to get her to talk to him, his crush on her becoming something else slowly every day.**

**Elmer sighed as he slid into the library seat, opening one of the many medical books that were housed there. He opened the page to sleep psychology. "Yes Elmer, lets get some good reading done." He told himself. But every sentence seemed to say Lona and Mike! Lona doesn't want you! She wants Mike; she thinks you're an idiot! She doesn't love you, and she never will. Mrs Dr Lona Tolburn!**

**Slowly Elmer began to repeat what he was seeing, quietly at first but gradually getting louder.**

"**She doesn't want me!" he whispered. "She doesn't want me! She doesn't want me!! She doesn't want me!!! She doesn't want me!!! She doesn't want me!!!!!" he yelled.**

"**Who?" Someone said. The voice from behind him brought him back down to earth.**

"**Erm, Dr Hook, Hi." Elmer stuttered and Hook sat opposite him.**

"**Please call me Nick." He simply said.**

"**Oh ok, Nick." Elmer once again stuttered.**

"**Now, who doesn't want you?" Nick hook asked.**

"**Erm doesn't matter." Elmer looked down.**

"**I bet its Lona Masingale, yeh?" Nick asked but Elmer didn't answer. "You got the hots for her?" Elmer nodded gently. "Well I hear she loves red roses." **

"**Really?" he perked his head up.**

"**yep." Nick winked and walked away, leaving Elmer much happier.**

**As Elmer left the library happier, he decided to go to reception and ring up the local flower shop, but his jaw hit the floor when he rounded the corner; a big bunch of red roses, being handed to Lona, by none other than.......mike Tolburn. That was it! Elmer was not going to have a chance and he would never get in before Mike. He needed to put his little crush to sleep, or better still kill it. He needed to find something else to occupy his mind first of all; his studies would do the trick.**

"**Now, she doesn't want me! I don't want her!" he repeated to himself over and over again as he walked down the hall towards them. **

"**hello Elmer, this is mik-" Lona began but he cut her off.**

"**I'm busy!" he snapped and she glared at him. He had never snapped at her before, he was always gentle and caring around her, but something had changed.**

"**Doing what?" Mike asked.**

"**Well it's none of your business for a start!" he snapped.**

"**Elmer!" Lona frowned.**

"**What!?!" he growled. This was definitely NOT the Elmer she knew.**

"**What is it you are busy with?" she asked, trying to sound nice but being firm at the same time.**

"**Killing it!" he simply answered and she glared at him, confusion sweeping across her face.**

"**Killing what?" she asked but only got silence in response.**

"**Killing a crush I have!" he finally replied before pushing past her and walking away.**

"**he's a little messed up, you don't have to worry about him." She lied before excusing herself and going off to find Elmer. **

**She found him on the roof, with no coat in the freezing cold, wrapping his arms around himself tightly.**

"**Elmer, whats going on?" she asked gently, sitting beside him.**

"**you know what." He simply mumbled.**

**She sighed slightly before slowly standing up. "you gonna come in? it's freezing**

**out here."**

"**Like you care..." he mumbled under his breath. "no, I'm staying out here."**

"**Ok, have it your way." She replied, watching her breath come out in wisps of**

**mist.**

"**Don't I always?" he mumbled.**

"**Before you come back in-" she started but he interrupted her**

"**Before I come in what?!" he snapped, but seeing the hurt on her face he lowered**

**his head and looked at the floor.**

"**You're gonna adopt a better attitude and you are gonna go in there and**

**apologize to Dr Tolburn!!!" she yelled and he looked at her stunned.**

"**What?" he asked, not believing what he had just heard.**

"**You heard!" she snapped. He looked away, breaking eye contact with her**

**enchanting green eyes.**

"**But I-" he began but she held up her hand.**

"**Save it Elmer, now get it together and do as I say!!!!"**

**She walked away from him, away from his reach, her eyes glaring and her anger**

**rising through the roof. He didn't follow; instead he got up and looked over the**

**edge. He watched as cars and people walked on the side walks. Before he knew**

**what he was doing, he had leant over too far and dropped his stethoscope over**

**the edge. He was too high up for him to see it land and it was at that point he**

**realized just how high he really was. He wanted to get up onto the edge and just**

**jump freely, wait til the end when he fell to the ground after flying through**

**air. But could he kill himself over one girl? To him Lona wasn't just another**

**girl, she was THE girl. He could do it and then she'd be sorry. But he didn't**

**wanna hurt her, he cared about her too much to hurt her, but would she really be**

**hurt over him? She probably wouldn't care and still live on to marry Dr Tolburn**

**and have his children. It was at that point Elmer began to cry. It was all too**

**much for him, he was only 24, he couldn't possibly know what love was, but at**

**the same time he thought he did and that love came in the form of Dr Lona**

**Massingale. He had to jump! He climbed steadily onto the wall, his eyes firmly down the whole time.  
Lona arrived back in the ER later that hour and was greeted by Dr Hook and the 2 paramedics who obviously had another nut case to bring in. Hook looked at her, sympathy crawling all over his face.**

"**What?!" She exclaimed.**

"**I'm sorry." He breathed as he pulled back the sheet on the gurney to reveal Elmer's young, but devilishly good looking cute face and she gasped.**

"**But I was just with him!" she breathed, shaking her head.**

"**Um we were just out side when we heard something thud on the top of the roof of the ambulance." One of the paramedics reported and her voice caught in her throat.**

"**He jumped Lona." Dr Hook told her and she suddenly couldn't breathe.**

"**It's my fault!" she finally managed to choke out.**

**She sat beside him in the morgue, not sure whether to go or not. Gently, she picked up his hand and began to rub it affectionately.**

"**Why did you do it Elmer??" she asked softly. She got no response as she expected "I never even got to tell you-" she began to say but as tears rolled down her cheeks, she found herself unable to speak for the lump in her throat. "How much I cared!" she finally choked out before sniffing and wiping her tears away, only so they could be replaced with fresh ones.**

"**Elmer..." she breathed before standing up and letting his hand lay lazily on the bed and leaned over him, kissing his cold forehead gently.**

**She let her tears fall onto his skin before turning around and walking away. She had barely made it to the door when she heard her name being called.**

"**Lona!" he called and as she turned back to face the morgue beds, she saw him, sitting up, very much alive.**

"**NO!" she yelled. "No you are dead!! I saw you, you were as cold as ice, you weren't breathing and your heart wasn't beating! You were dead!"**

"**I don't know what happened, I was dead, but then, lying there I felt as if I was given a new lease of life, as if someone wanted me to do something." he explained and she looked dumbly at him.**

"**Elmer, you died!" she repeated as if she had not heard a word he had just said and he sighed.**

"**Where are my clothes?" he asked in a matter of fact tone.**

**She screamed when he got off the bed and progressed towards her. "God! I'm not gonna hurt you for Christ's sake!!"**

"**I can't deal with this!" she shook her head and almost ran up the stairs before turning the handle and pulling the door open.**

"**Fine! Leave me like every other time you decided to ignore whatever I did!" he yelled and she stopped dead in front of the door before slowly turning around.**

"**What?" she whispered.**

"**Oh come on, you've always denied anything I said, or dismissed it. Like the time I said I had a crush on you! You laughed it off and went and had dinner with Dr Phillips!!!" he yelled and she began to cry again. Normally he would run to her and attempt to put his arms around her when she was in a state, but this time he wasn't going to, he was sick of being made a fool.**

"**Elmer!" she cried taking a step closer towards him, before abruptly stopping. **

"**Elmer nothing Lona!!" he glared at her. "I am sick of the way you treat me!"**

"**Don't shout." She pleaded but he wasn't about to listen to her.**

"**Don't tell me what to do!" he snapped back at her, making her jump before taking a step away from him.**

"**I'm sorry." She breathed but he continued to glare at her.**

**Suddenly he gripped his stomach tightly, yelling out in pain as something appeared on his morgue gown...blood. She heard a maniacal laugh and looked over at Elmer, paralysed and unsure of what to do. Elmer was lying on the floor and a young ghost boy was standing in front of her.**

"**hahahahaha!!" he laughed before nodding his head side to side and disappearing, leaving Lona and a half dead Elmer. She ran to his lifeless body and dropped to her knees, flinging her arms to his abdomen.**

"**Elmer!!" she cried, placing her hand on his face, gently stroking it, hoping it would bring him round. After a few minutes nothing happened and she was in a dead silent room, with only the sounds of his shallow breaths and her constant sobs to keep her company.**

"**Lona!" he whispered and she looked at him, happy that he was now conscious.**

"**Yes?" she eagerly asked.**

"**I'm gonna die." He groaned before moving a hand to his abdomen.**

"**No you're not." She told him, trying to keep her tears back but failing desperately. He saw how strong she was trying to be and raised his hand to touch her face at which point she closed her eyes as she indulged in his touch. His hands were soft and gentle and she liked that.**

"**I like you a lot." He breathed as he felt his life slowly being dragged away from him. **

"**I like you too." She whispered, though she did not know why she was whispering.**

"**Please remember how much I cared about you." He pleaded and she let out a suppressed sob and shook her head, alarming him.**

"**No because you can tell me everyday." She told him and he looked at her, the pain in his eyes was evident. "Please don't leave me."**

**He let out a slight 'Elmer' laugh and tried to turn onto his side but it was too painful to do so. He looked at her again, noticing how much she had changed in the last half an hour. She had gone from strong 35 yr old woman to broken down, scared 5 yr old child and that scared the hell out of both of them.**

"**I'm so, so, so, so sorry." She cried.**

"**Why?" he asked, choking on his spit.**

"**I'm sorry that it took all this just for me to realise how much I care about you." She breathed before placing a hand under his neck.**

"**I knew it." He grinned and she tried to smile but couldn't quite manage it.**

"**And you know what? I don't just care about you, I think I love you." She cried and his smile disappeared.**

"**You do?" he asked and she looked at him, unable to answer so she laid down beside him, placing her head on his shoulder, allowing him to stroke her dusty blonde hair. **

"**Yes I do." She repeated after a long silence.**

"**So do I." he informed her and she scrunched up her face to disable more tears and sobs to erupt, but she failed and she began to sob uncontrollably so she turned onto her side to face him and pushed her face into his body, waiting for him to comfort her but he didn't. This worried her and when she sat up, she looked long and hard at him. He had gone.**


	2. A Change In Progression

**She couldn't sob, she couldn't cry, she couldn't speak. With no tears left in her, she began to slowly press on his chest, although she knew full well he had no hope of surviving. "Elmer." She managed to squeak out as she placed her lips to his and began to breathe for him. When she sat back, he was still dead, still long gone but never forgotten. It was at that point she began to hear a faint bell ringing. Was this the little girl she had heard about but dismissed scientifically?**

**When a little girl in a ragged brown dress, trailing a tatty doll and holding a bell in her hand, appeared in front of her, Lona almost had a heart attack.**

"**No, this can't be happening!" she told herself.**

"**Elmer, Elmer, it's time to go." The girl with scraggly hair announced. She was a cute looking child with a sweet smile molded on her pale face but Lona still couldn't grasp the fact that this was the little girl that sally druse had told everyone about. She closed her eyes, scrunching them tight, allowing no more tears to fall and no emotions to surface. When she opened them again, she was in for a bigger shock...**

"**Ah!" Her voice caught in her throat and she was ready to faint as an anteater type creature was sniffing Elmer, almost as if he was accessing him.**

"**It's not his time, mary." The anteater announced as he nudged some life back into the young med student.**

"**But it is, he died!" Mary exclaimed but sighed when the anteater gave her that look. "Antibus..." she began but he held up a paw, (if that was possible).**

"**What the hell are you?!" Lona asked in a deep tone, her voice shaking violently.**

"**The gatekeeper, now are you gonna come over here and comfort this poor unconscious man??" Antibus asked in a gruff voice.**

"**He's not unconscious, he's dead!" She rolled her eyes and almost felt the same sickly feeling spreading back over here.**

"**Not anymore he's not." Antibus announced and Lona frowned. "It's not his time, Paul was wrong to try and kill him."**

"**Paul?" Lona asked, feeling her head begin to spin.**

"**Yes, the boy, the one that done the damage." Antibus answered as the ground began to shake.**

**Chris stood by as another earthquake tremor shook through the whole building, but had to grab onto Hook as she swayed.**

"**When is it going to stop???" she cried and he looked at her, seeing the fear in her eyes.**

"**Soon." He spoke, trying to sound comforting, but couldn't and he knew it. His inability was confirmed by the sight of tears welling up in her eyes.**

"**It's never been this bad!" She choked, trying to stop her voice shaking and he swallowed.**

"**It'll be over soon." He repeated but she shook her head, scrunching her eyes tightly to disable the tears from falling. It was a sign of weakness and she didn't want him thinking she was weak, that would make him think less of her. **

**She let go of him before leaning herself against the lift wall, fearing for both of their lives. She looked over at the warning stickers on the wall.**

'**Don't use in event of earthquake.' One read and she scoffed.**

**Too late now...**


	3. Keeping Cool

**'I dont wanna die.' She thought but couldnt speak for the lump rising in her throat as Hook spoke to otto through the intercom.**

**The lift started up once again and she let out a huge sigh of relief but almost screamed with frustration when it stopped only a few seconds later.**

**"Dr Hook, the lift is jammed in the shaft, i'm gonna have to call some professionals." Otto told him and Hook frowned. 'I thought you were the professional!' he thought but letting otto go and get help.**

**He glanced at Chris behind him, who looked like she was ready to collapse with the heat and lack of air in the small lift. She swayed violently from side to side, her skin looked clammy and pale and he could hear her breaths coming out in sharp rasps.**

**"You ok?" he asked, his voice travelling the metre space between them but when it reached her, it was barely audible to her.**

**She didnt say anything, instead she just looked at him before she reached out for the metal wall to steady herself. She closed her eyes and began to breathe deeply but when she opened them, her vision was terribly blurry and before she could reach out for him, she lost consciousness, falling to the floor with a thud and landed in a heap. He rushed over to her, immediately dropping to his knees and moving her hair away from her mouth and throat. He began to gently massage her throat and neck area to increase the act of breathing and swallowing so she wouldnt choke or suffucate.**

**After a while she opened her eyes and was drawn back into consciousness but felt dizzy when she looked up at Hook.**

**"hey." he smiled as he gently brushed her hair away from her eyes.**

**"mmm." she groaned, frowning as pain wracked through her body.**

**As the ant eater and the little girl disappeared, Lona looked at Elmer's body, he was breathing and his eyes were looking around. As she made her way over to him, he began to speak, quietly as first, but gradually getting louder.**

**"lona?" he choked and she looked over him.**

**"yeah?" she asked, tears staining her cheeks.**

**"Did you mean it?" he asked, trying to raise a hand to his forehead which was pounding.**

**"I..I -er think so." she stuttered, unsure of what she was feeling.**

**Chris stood up, but almost fell back down again as pain washed over her so he lent her a hand, which she took gratefully and got back up again, leaning lazily against the wall.**

**"What happened?" he asked, but she didnt say anything, instead she began to sway again. "You feel like you're gonna faint again?"**

**She nodded slightly and he rushed to her side, helping her lower herself to the ground and she leaned her head backwards, looking up at the lights on the roof of the small elevator box. After a while the lights began to make her dizzy so she shook her head lightly and closed her eyes.**

**"Chris?" he called but she didnt open her eyes. "Chris??" he asked, trying to get a response from him, but she didnt answer him. Finally she opened her eyes and looked at him.**

**"Mm?" she answered, too weak to form words.**

**"You alright?" he asked, crouching down in front of her.**

**He placed a hand to her cheek, immediately flinching at the touch of her hot and clammy skin. Gently he lifted her head up until she was looking at him, but her eyes were rolling back and forth as if attached to strings, this worried him.**

**"it's hot, so hot." she breathed, and he brushed her hair out of her eyes, noting how hot her forehead was.**

**"Dont close your eyes." he willed but she couldnt keep them open any longer. This 'outburst' was completely unexplainable and neither could figure out why she had collapsed and was so hot.**

**"I need a drink." she whined and it hit him.**

**"When was the last time you drank?" he asked, lifting her head up with his hand.**

**"Umm, last night maybe." she spoke between sharp breaths.**

**"Chris, i think you're dehydrated, why didnt you drink this morning?" he asked with sympathy laced in his voice.**

**"I was gonna but stegman called me to the ER and then i had job after job after job and i just forgot." she answered, tears filling up in her eyes once again.**

**"You are human, you have to remember to drink once in a while." he answered, sounding harsh, but only because he was worried about her. Before his eyes, she began to cry, making his heart break in two.**

**"Hey, hey, it's ok. I'm not having a go at you, it's just if you dont drink, you'll get ill." he told her softly but she didnt stop crying, instead it made her cry more. "chris!" he shook his head slightly before sliding down onto the space beside her, pulling her body into his arms. The stress and frustration had finally got to her and she couldnt stop the sobs that wracked through her body violently. He closed his eyes as she laid her head on his shoulder and sobbed consistently, taking time to wipe her eyes every now and then, whilst he ran a hand down her spine, his other hand stroking her hair affectionately and he was murmuring a low 'Shh' sound. It was at that point he began to feel something; a tingling feeling in the pit oh his stomach and he felt himself looking at her in a completely different way.**

**Sure he had always thought she was pretty, if not beautiful but now he was finding himself attracted to her and wanting to kiss her tempting lips. He shook his head to wake himself up, (so to speak) and began to pray that he wouldnt....**

**Elmer tried to sit up but found it too painful so Lona helped him lay back down again.**

**"I thought i'd lost you." she spoke, trying to stop her voice from shaking again.**

**"Us Traff's never give up." he grinned and she let out a smile before taking his hand hers, a tear slipping down her cheek when she did so.**


	4. A Not So Grand Finale

A.N: As I am becoming rapidly busier by the day, I am trying to wrap up all unfinished stories, if you have any ideas, please let me know by either emailing me or reviewing my work with your ideas. Thanks.

**Lona looked at Elmer, almost laughing at being able to have him back in her arms. Just then, she noticed he was shivering and it hit her that he had been wearing nothing but a tacky hospital gown.**

"Hang on, lemme go fetch you some blankets." She breathed, unsure of where to actually find some blankets but she wanted the best for him anyway so she tried her hand at filling him with hope.

"**Don't be long, my love." He purred and she smiled warmly as she pulled open some drawers in the autopsy room.**

**Suddenly the lift began to move again and all normality was restored, as Otto confirmed on the intercom.**

**When the lift came to a grinding halt at the ground floor, ER, Hook helped Chris up, before helping her to one of the beds in the main curtain area.**

"**Liz, get an IV in her now! She needs fluids! Come on people." Hook beckoned and forced Chris gently to lie on the bed while Liz worked an IV into her arm.**

"**I'll come back to see you soon, ok?" Hook leaned closer to her and she nodded weakly.**

**Lona pulled the bundle of blue hospital blankets into her arms, carrying them to Elmer as fast as possible. He was almost blue when she got back to him, so she gave him a longing kiss on the lips to bring the colour in his cheeks back.**

"**Here." She spoke softly as she gave him the bundle of about 5 blankets.**

**Hook, as promised, went back to see Chris that afternoon and she was sitting up on the edge of the bed, looking happy as she once had been and he smiled when he walked in.**

"**Now, seeing as you've already fainted on me once, almost fainted on me twice, I think I deserve to take you out to dinner, what'd ya say?" he grinned, as did she.**

"**I guess there's no harm." She answered as he lent her his hand, which she took. "Now?"**

"**No time like the present." He continued to grin, filling her with comfort.**

"**I suppose so." She muttered as the left the hospital, arm in arm.**

**Elmer had finally warmed up and beckoned for Lona to join him under the blankets, an invitation which she accepted. Wriggling under the blankets, she ran her hand over the soft smoothness of his covered chest, laying her head against his shoulder comfortably.**

"**Should I go and get help?" She asked sub-consciously.**

"**No, let's just stay like this, please?" He asked, so wrapped up in her love and warmth, he didn't hear the whispered 'ok' that followed.**

**THE END.**


End file.
